CEO Update
CEO Update: Looking ahead to a bigger, better experience at The Birth Place
CMH’s Birth Place will have a new home in 2026 on the third floor of the hospital expansion. The Birth Place is our obstetrics wing with birthing suites that provide a private, home-like environment.
The expansion will elevate the care we provide for moms and babies at The Birth Place. Brenna Allen, RN, is the department educator and is excited about the new facility and new technology we are using even now at The Birth Place.
Dr. Shelly Meents, an obstetrician/gynecologist with the CMH OB/GYN Clinic, was a champion for the efforts at last year’s Soirée to raise money for the new equipment now in use at The Birth Place.
Continue reading or watch the video to learn more about:
- What The Birth Place staff is excited about in the expansion
- The new wireless fetal monitors being used now at the Birth Place
The Birth Place in the hospital expansion
Calhoun: In our current Birth Place, we have six LDRP (labor, delivery, recovery and post-partum recovery) rooms. In the new expansion, we’re going to have nine. So that’s 50% more room capacity.
Allen: We are most excited about having more labor and delivery rooms. CMH is very special in the sense that our patients labor, deliver, recover and have their postpartum stay in the same room. In the expansion, we will have more rooms to be able to do that. Instead of trying to rotate a little bit with our census, each room will be equipped with delivery equipment. We’ll also have more resources like our peanut balls and birthing balls that patients can use during the labor process to help speed things along.
We will also have triage rooms. If someone comes in and needs IV fluids or we aren't sure if they’re going to be a stay with us, we have a specific place dedicated for them, where we can care for them and see what we need to do.
Calhoun: Another feature of the expansion is the C-section suite actually being in the unit.
Allen: When people come in for tours, they can see the C-section suite being a little more accessible. It will take away some of the fear aspect that people have. It’s still a big surgery, so it’s normal to be scared of that, but to be able to see things and to know that you're still going to be in the same spot, cared for by the same people and that we're going to be there with them every step of the way. It brings comfort and peace to that situation.
Calhoun: We've also grown the nursery and the waiting area, because this is an important time for families.
Allen: I am excited for a bigger waiting room to have more comfort for our families who are welcoming a bundle of joy with us. Our space in the rooms is sometimes a little bit limited, and sometimes people just need a break to go outside and wait. Having a more spacious area where they can be more comfortable and celebrate more together is something we're definitely excited for.
The nursery is another unique feature. We still allow infants to be sent to the nursery if the mom needs a nap or to take a shower and wants some supervision. It gives us more space to care for the babies and to keep them cozy, and for the moms to be able to peek by the window and know that they’re in good hands.
Calhoun: We’ve also discussed the importance of keeping infants safe and secure. Talk about what your department does now and what plans are in the new facility to make sure we keep our patients safe.
Allen: One of our safety features is that we do fingerprints and footprints with mom and baby for identification at delivery. We also have ID bands with matching numbers to ensure every baby belongs to the right mom. In the new building, we are going to have more technology, with a sensor to help us know if babies are being moved from one place to another.
New wireless fetal monitors
Calhoun: At CMH, we’re always investing in new equipment and tools for the care and safety of our patients. Recently, through the proceeds that were raised at last year's Soirée, we were able to buy a new piece of equipment.
Allen: I am so excited about this new equipment. Our wireless monitors are a great opportunity for our patients to be more active in labor. They can even get into the shower for pain management, if that's something they want to do, because they’re waterproof.
It helps move their labor along because we say, “motion is lotion,” which helps move their bodies around and get these babies here.
Calhoun: Then it hooks into our system, and you're able to see that from the nurse's station.
Allen: And we have central monitoring, so we can check on our patients in every room and keep an eye on them. It also tells us their signal. If our patients are walking around, we can send a call sound so that they know they need to come back to the room to either have the doctor speak with them or one of their nurses to check on them.
Calhoun: Dr. Meents was really passionate about this project, and she felt that if we could get this equipment, it would really make a difference in the experience for our patients. She was a champion for this. You could see that she knew that getting this new equipment would make such a big difference for the patient's experience.
Dr. Meents: With all the support at last year’s CMH Soirée, we were able to purchase equipment for the CMH Birth Place that we’re already using. The remote, wireless fetal monitor allows us to monitor mom’s contractions and baby's heart rate throughout labor. Mom can be more mobile and not so attached to the monitor. She could be in bed. She could be ambulating in the room. She could be on different equipment that we use, such as a birthing ball. It's just a lot easier for her to be maneuvering around, so they don't feel so stuck down to the bed. Our four monitors can be used in any of the rooms.
Calhoun: If you have a baby here at CMH, you're in good hands. You're in good hands with the great physicians and nurses that we have. And it's a safe place to have your baby. You can tell a lot of cheer and a lot of passion goes into this from our team. We’re so proud of what we're able to offer here at the CMH Birth Place.
Michael Calhoun shares the latest happenings at CMH in his monthly CEO Updates. He is the CEO/executive director of CMH and the Citizens Memorial Health Care Foundation.
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